Indented shock absorbing cushioning or packing paper and method and apparatus for making same



March ,-1936. J. E. KIEFFER 2,036,051

INDENTED SHOCK ABSORBING CUSHIONING 0R PACKING PAPER AND METHOD ANDAPPARATUS FOR MAKING SAME Filed April 7, 1934 3 Sheets-Sheet .l

.i 1 AlrLHH- u E.||. .l. q Ur. .IHI 11W 8. -IL U ml L 2 1 14 1 m M r.-|l FL n 0 um 10 U 0 0 :U rL rL .ll. 2 m m .L 3 n 3 U U -U U. U[ H z I. rm. J. m L J L G I FL 2 ll .IJ I -J I v 3 .L .L a mm u B B U BBB D 1 n, 1a n l U 1 L 6 M 6 m 3 t E a U H m H F 1. mu us 0:0 D an. n w 1 m P FLr-- :4 m L. IL I m 9 0:0 U Du m a .n .2. "I." v 3 2 3 Fl FL 2 UD U U UUSU U L y \r- 2L INVENTOR. JOHN E KLEFFER 4 BY ATTORNEYS March 31, 1936.J. E. KIEFFER 2,036,051

INDENTED SHOCK ABSORBING "CUSHIONING QR PACKING PAPER AND METHOD ANDAPPARATUS FOR MAKING SAME Filed April 7, 1934- 3 Sheets-$hpet 2 upq musnu L l I l I FIG. 5

INVENTOR. JOHN E. KIEFFER g wromisy I March 31, 1936. J. E. KIEFFER2,036,051

INDENTED SHQCK ABSORBING CUSHIONING OR PACKING PAPER AND METHOD ANDAPPARATUS FOR MAKING SAME Filed Apvil 7, 1934 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 FIG. 7

INVEN TOR. JOHN E. KIEFFER ZMwmm ATTORNEYS Patented Mar. 31, 1935 g 42,030,051 INDEN'lmsnocx A380 '6 cosmos" ING OB PACKING PAPER AND METHODAND APPARATUS FOR MAKING SAME J John E. Kiefler, Ewing, Ind. ApplicationApril I, 1934, Serial No. 719.492

i 10 Claims. ((1154-43) The present invention relates to shock abscrbingcushioning or packing paper of the type which is provided on one or bothoi its surfaces with a multiplicityoi more or less closely spaced 5hollow'protuberances or indentations as distin-' 'guished fromcorrugations; Such paper is partlcularly well adaptedior wrapping andprotecting-fragile articles such as glassware, and may also be used as apipe covering and for covering floors or stairs under carpets.

In my prior patent (Patent No. 1,780,526 dated November 4, 1930), I havedisclosed a material 0! this type in which the protuberances have beenmolded into the paper after it has been completely formed and after asubstantial portion of its water content had been removed withoutmaterially decreasing its plasticity or causing the fibers to set intheir-usual substantially flat condition, and prior to the finalconditioning and setting of the fibers of the paper.- By molding theprotube'rances in this manner I have found it possible to produce deeperindentations than had been made by prior processes and to impart to theproduct a previously unequalled rubber-like 'ing of the indentations orprotuberances is reselected toillustrate the invention, the indenta-.tions on one side of the sheet are shown to be inv line in the breadthand lengthoi the sheet as well as diagonally oil-the sheet while theindentations on the other side of the sheet are shown 5 to be in lineonly in the breadth of the sheet.

However, I am not to belimited to this particular arrangement of theindentations, ior there are many other possible arrangements falling witthe essence of the invention. 10

Another object is toprovide a method for making an indented shockabsorbing cushioning or packing paper in which the registration ornestduced to a minimum.

Still another object is to provide an apparatus for making an indentedshock absorbing cushioning or packing paper in which the registration ornesting of the indentations or protuberances is reducedto a minimum. 20

Referring briefly to the drawings, Figure 1 is w an enlarged plan viewota small portion of material made according to the teachings of thepresent invention, the arrangement of protu'ber-- {525 resiliency normalto its surface. Indented paper as made prior to the present inventionhas one shortcoming; namely, it the material is laminated as by windinga web in a 1 roll or by stacking a number of sheets, the in- #3dentations or protuberances oi the diflerent layances on the uppersurface of the sheet being indicated diagrammatically by solid squares,while the protuberances on the bottcmof the sheet are indicateddiagrammatically by squares in dotted lines;

ers tend to register and to nest in each other. For certain'uses andapplications of indented paper, this is a-serious disadvantage, fornesting bi the indentations cuts down the amount of airspace between thelayers, thus lessening to a considerable extent the shock absorbingandheat insulating properties of a lemiriatedsheet. Fur- =1thermore;nesting'oi' theindentations makes .it.

impossible to wind a welrso as to produce a roll 40 having a uniiormcircular cross-section. More! over, it is-exceedingly diflicult toseparate nested sheets by hand, an operation which must be performedvery rapidly in the placing of sheets between the articles beingwrapped.

v The principal object of the present invention is to provide anindented shock absorbing cushioning or packing paper in which theregistration or nesting otthe indentations-or protuberances In its veryessence, the phase of the invention rendering the'ioregoing objectpossible of accomplishment consists in arranging the indentations orprotuberances on at least one side of the sheet so that they are out-ofline ina plurality s of directions on the sheet. In the t Figure-2 is across-section taken along line 8 2-2 01 Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a cross-section taken along line 3-3 of Figure 1; Figure '4is a front elevation of a pair of indenting rolls and associatedmechanism for producing the product of Figure 1; the arrangement ofprotuberances on each of the rolls being shown diagrammatically. bysolid squares and the pro- 4 jection oi. the protuberances oi the bottomroll onto the top roll being indicated dit cally by means of squares indottedlines;

"Flgure5isaviewsimilartoFlgure4oian alternative embodiment of a pair ofindenting rolls and associated mechanism;

Figure 6 is'a view similar toFigure'5 of. an- 45 I other embodiment ofindenting apparatus suitable for the purposes of the present invention;and .4,

Figure'lisaviewsimilarto Figurefioi'still another embodiment ofindenting apparatus.

Reterring in greater detail to the drawings and particularly to Figures1,' 2 and 3 thereohthe sheet 01' paper per seis denoted generally by'thenumeral l. The upper surface of the sheetis provided with assriesotprotuberances 2 indlcated rather diagrammatically by means ofsolid squares. The lower surface of the sheet is provided with a seriesof protuberances 3 indicated rather diagrammatically by means of squaresin dotted lines. The protuberances may take any polyhedral shape, suchas forexample, cubes or hemispheres, without sacrificing any of theadvantages of the invention. Obviously the protuberances of. one side ofthe sheet form indentations for the reverse side of the sheet, so thatin the embodiment illustrated both sides are provided with protuberancesand indentations. The spaces between the protuberances and indentationsare substantially in the plane of the original sheet of papers.

It is to be noted that the protuberances 2 are in line, not onlylongitudinally and transversely of the sheet but also diagonally of thesheet. The indentations 3 are illustrated as being in line transverselyof the sheet but out of line in every other direction. Taking the firsttransverse row of protuberances 2 as a reference line, it will be seenthat the first transverse row of indentations 3 is in longitudinalalinement therewith, but that each succeeding transverse row ofindentations 3 is shifted over slightly to the right until the fourthtransverse row of indentations 3. With the fifth transverse row, theindentations 3 start shifting back to the left until in the seventhtransverse row they are again in longitudinal alinement with theprotuberances 2. This particular arrangement is repeated for the entirelength of the material. It is to be noted that the amount of shift ofthe transverse rows of indentations 3 back and forth transversely of thesheet is equal to the distance between two contiguous longitudinal rowsof protuberances 2.

In Figures 4 and 5 are illustrated two alternative forms of indentingrolls for producing the material of Figure 1. As illustrated in Figure4, the two rolls are indicated by the reference numerals II and II. Thetop roll III is fixed on a shaft I2, to which shaft is also fixed thegear I 3. Thebottom roll II is fixedto a shaft Il to which shaft is alsofixed the gear I5. These two gears mesh as indicated in order totransmit the rotation of one of the gears to the other. Sufilcient spaceis left between the two rolls for the purposes of the invention.

Each shaft is rotatively supported near its ends in the standards orframes I6 and I! which are provided with the proper bearings. One of therails is also provided with means to shift it back and forth axially. Inthe illustrated embodiment, it is the lower roll II which is shown somounted, but clearly either or both rolls may be mounted for axialmovement. In Figure 4, the shaft ll of the lower roll has fixed to oneof its ends the cam wheel II having a circumferentially disposed camgroove or slot I9. This slot receives the lug 2. carried by thestationary stand 2|. Thedesignofthecamissuehas toshiftthe lower rollback and forth axially a small distance, which may well be equal to thedistance between two circumferentially contiguous rows of protuberanceson the rolls.

The protuberances on tne upper roll are denoted by the numerals in,while those on the 6 lower roll are denoted by the numerals to.Bothsetaofprotuberancesarearrangedinrowsboth clrcumferentially andaxially of the rolls. As the rdls rotate the cam causes the lower rollto shift 8 drawn between the rolls, the rows of indentations made by thelower roll will be shifted back and forth transversely of the sheet.

The same result may be produced by spacing the protuberances on one ofthe rolls so that they are arranged in rows axially of the roll but areout of line circumferentially of the roll. Referring to Figure 5, thetwo rolls are denoted by I0 and II', their shafts by I2 and Il', theirgears by I3 and I5, and the protuberances by 2b and 3b. The ends of theshafts I2 and Il" are shown as being rotatively supported in thestandards It and I1.

' The protuberances 2b on the upper roll III are arranged as in thefirst embodiment of the apparatus, i. e. in line both axially andcircumferentially of the roll. The protuberances 3b on the lower rollII' are arranged so that they are in line only axially of the roll.Circumferentially of the roll II the corresponding protuberances ofadjacent axial rows are out of line. Preferably each axial row ofprotuberances 3b shifts over slightly in one axial direction and thenback in the other axial direction.

In both embodiments of the invention, the axial rows of protuberances ofthe lower roll when projected onto the upper roll fall in between theaxialrows of protuberances of the upper roll (see Figures 4 and 5) andshift first in one axial direction relative to the axial rows ofprotuberances on the upper roll and then in the opposite direction.

In Figures 6 and 7, I have illustrated two alternative forms ofapparatus in which both of the indenting rolls shift endwise as theyrotate. Referring to Figure 6 the two indenting rolls are indicated bythe numerals Ila and Ho. The top roll Ilia is provided with theprotuberances 2c and the bottom roll II a is likewise provided with rthe protuberances 30. Both of these sets of protuberances are arrangedsimilarly to those of Figure 4; namely, in rows both circumferentiallyand axially of the rolls.

The two rolls Ilia and Ho are fixed to the shafts I la and Ila, theupper shaft I211 carrying the gear I3a and the lower shaft Ila carryingthe gear I5a. The gears mesh to transmit the rotation of one roll to theother. The ends of the shafts Ila and Ila are joumalled in the verticalstandards Ito and Ho. The ends of the shafts which are journalled at Ito extend beyond the standard and are provided with the cam wheels Ilaand 22. The lower cam wheel I80 is provided with a cam slot Ila. Thisslot receives the lug 20a carried by the stationary stand 2Ia. Thedesign of the cam is such as to shift the lower roll back andforth'axiaily a short distance, which may be equal to half the distancebetween two circumferentially contiguous rows of protuberances, or toany small multiple of such distance.

The upper cam wheel 22 is provided with a cam slot 23 which receives alug 24, which may be carried as shown in Figure 6 by the standard Ila.,The design of the cam is preferably such as to cause the upper roll toshift back and forth axially a short distance in opposite directions tothe shift of the bottom roll. The shift of theupperrollmaybeequalinlengthtothatofthebottom roll. conceivably the shiftof both rolls may be in the same directiombut of such relative lengthsas to produce a relative shift of the corresponding protuberances.

In Figure '1, an'arrangement is shown wherein the relative shift of thetwo rolls is produced by meshingcamwheels. Thetworollsaredesignated asIlb and IIb and the two sets of protuberances as M and 3d. Theprohiberanoeo on both rolls are arranged as in Figure d; i. e. in rowsboth circumferentially and axially of the rolls. the meshing gears byI3b and l5b. One end of each shaft is journalled in the standard 16bwhile the other end is journalled in the standard llb.

The ends of the shafts which are journalled in the standard l6b areprovided with meshing cam" wheels lb and 22a. One of the cam wheels; e..g. the upper one which is designated by the numeral 22a, is providedwith a slot 23a while the other cam wheel l8b is provided with acircumferential rib 25 which is received in the slot 23a.

The design of the groove 23a and of the rib 25 are such as to cause thetwo rolls lllb and l l b to shift relatively to each other as they arerotated.

- The design may be such as to produce a shift .in its ordinary sense inthe art; namely, as a sheet material formed by papermaking methods froman aqueous suspension of fibrous materials such as cellulose and/orasbestos which may be admixed with other vegetable, animal or mineralfibers to impart to the product other desirable properties.

' The foregoing constitutes the essential thought of my invention, butit is to be understood that its details may be modified in various ways,replaced by other details or combined with other concepts withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of the following claims, in which Iam endeavoring to cover all novelty inherent in the foregoingdisclosure. 4

I claim:

1. As an article of manufacture, a shock absorbing cushioning or packingpaper provided on one of its sides with a multiplicity of indentations,said indentations being arranged in rows, said rows of indentationsbeing progressively offset -relative to each other, whereby the tendencyof the indentations to nest when the paper is rolled is reduced to aminimum. 2. As an article of manufacture, a shock absorbing cushioningor packing paper provided on one of its sides with a. multiplicity ofhollow protuberances and with a multiplicity of indentations, saidprotuberances being arranged in rows and columns and said indentationsbeing arranged in rows, said .rows of indentations being progressivelyoffset relative to each other, whereby the tendency of the protuberancesand indentations to nest when the paper is rolled is reduced to a Theshafts are denoted by I21: and Mb and 3. The article defined by claim 1,wherein the rows of indentations are equally spaced.

4. The article defined by claim 2, wherein the rows of protuberances areequally spaced.

5. A method for producing an indented shock absorbing cushioning orpacking paper, the indentations of which will not nest when the paper iswound in a roll, said method consisting in passing a web of paperthrough the gap between two indenting rolls and simultaneously shiftingone of said rolls back and forth transversely to the web.

6. An apparatus for producing an indented shock absorbing cushioning orpacking paper, the indentations of which will not nest when the paper iswound in a roll, said apparatus consisting of a pair of rotatableindenting rolls spaced to permit the drawing of a web of papertherebetween and means for shifting one of said indenting rolls'back andforth transversely of the web of paper.

7. An apparatus for producing an indented shock absorbing cushioning orpacking paper, the indentations of which will not nest when the paper iswound in a roll, said apparatus consisting of a pair of rotatableindenting rolls spaced to permit the drawing of a web of papertherebetween, each of said rollsbeing provided on its surface with amultiplicity of protuberances arranged in rows both circumferentiallyand longitudinally of the rolls and means for shifting one of saidindenting rolls back and forth transversely of the web. of paper.

8. An apparatus for producing an indented shock absorbing cushioning orpacking paper, the indentations of which will not nest when the paper iswound in a roll, said apparatus consisting of a pair of rotatableindenting rolls spaced to permit the drawing of a web of papertherebetween and means for shifting said indenting rolls back and forthtransversely of the web of paper relatively to each other.

'9. An apparatus for producing an indented shock absorbing cushioning orpacking paper, the indentations of which will not nest when the paper iswound in a roll, said apparatus consisting of a pair of rotatableindenting rolls spaced to permit the drawing of a web of papertherebetween, each of said rolls being provided on its surface with amultiplicity of protuberances arranged in rows both circumferentiallyand longitudinally of the rolls and means for shifting said indentingrolls back and forth transversely of the web of papen'rclative1y to eachother.

10. An ap aratus for producing an indented g cushioning or packingpaper, the f which will not nest when the paper is woi d in a roll, saidapparatus consisting of a pair'of rotatable indenting rolls spaced topermit filiedrawing of a web of paper therebetween and means forshifting said indenting rolls in opposite directions back and forthtransversely of the web of paper.

JOHN E. KIEFFER.

